Real

How does it feel to be needed?
How does it feel to be whole?
What do we need to feel alive again?
What do we feel when we’re loved?

We feel real
We feel real
We feel real
We feel real

Tell me what it is that you want from me
Tell me what it is that you need
Tell me what it is I can do for you
Tell me how it feels to be loved

It feels real 
It feels real
I feel real
I feel real
And I feel real

Real

Debris Discs’ upcoming album has a central concept that was inspired by family letters written during World War 2. The legacy of war also led to an exploration of loss in a more universal sense, a central theme in new single Losing the Matriarch.  

Says James about the track, “Losing the Matriarch is like the counterpoint to my last single, The Worst Sight That I’ve Seen So Far. In place of the imagined memories formed through reading my Grandpa's WW2 letters, this song is inspired by my own reflections and experiences.”

While the track evokes memories of ordnance factories, ginger beer and apple pie, it also explores loss from a more personal perspective. One where meditations on war give way to the embracing of peacetime, all the while the cycle of life continues.

“It's moving on from the hope and fear of youth to the fragility of a life that's run its course,” reveals James about the track. “Through the lyrics, I'm trying to understand what happens once the family loses its matriarch. Does everything just fall apart? And how much of myself do I lose along the way? I don't think I've found the answer, but it's been a cathartic process.”

Determined to evoke a sense of nostalgia and longing, James brings Beach Boys harmonies and a Belle & Sebastian style indie-pop sensibility into play within the track. As much as Debris Discs’ material aims to bring the listener on an emotional journey, it is also meant to entertain:    
“Musically, I was really interested in juxtaposing the heavy subject matter with a lightness of touch. In my head it's almost like a disco track. Not a dance floor filler per se, more one for the awkward feet shufflers hanging by the bar.”

Losing the Matriarch is released in digital formats on the 21st of April via Todmorden-based record label AnalogueTrash. It will also appear on the upcoming Debris Discs album Post War Plans, which is scheduled for release later this year

Losing the Matriarch

The next album from Time. Space. Repeat. - the soundtrack to a utopian society, destroyed by hubris and unforeseen events. Everything has its consequence.

Bossa Never

Elephant

Blue

A song about emerging from challenging times, in glorious fashion. It was inspired by a few visits to Birmingham and includes a few references to the city in its lyric - along with Edinburgh and Reims, which are perhaps associated more with opulence and glamour (even if it isn't always the truth.)

Distinctly Continental

The partners of HJJW present to you Playing Office from their business themed album ‘Sound Investments’. Combining the skills of Andrew Hartshorn, Cosmic Bos (the Jackson brothers) and ASeaWarren, this musical slice of modern office life takes you on a journey through the 9 to 5, examining the existential crisis of work life balances and overtime taxes, timesheets and insurance policies, major lifts and minor falls. The themes of the album are directly represented in Playing Office, with its references to Michael Scott and David Brent, and a couple of other hidden Easter eggs for the office media savvy, the job is what you make it, so make it fun.

HJJ&W are here to represent music made by the people for the people, vote for Playing Office and help HJJ&W become the legitimate musical firm they are destined to become.

PLAYING OFFICE by HJJ&W

Went to the music market today
We did a business and came away
With a bag full of bass lines and half whistled tunes
A four to the floor that we accent with spoons
Tidy melodies all stocked and shared
Progressive chord structures harmonically paired
Time to play office, we’re cutting it fine 
Under a tight rapidly approaching deadline

I wanna be Jim
But I’m probably Dwight
Or Michael Scott at threat level midnight
It’s entertainment 
Clear for all to see
We’re victims of the industry 

But it’s okay, we are artists at heart
Our dedication needs to be to our art
We’re playing office so we can pay the bills
While in our spare time keep developing skills
Turning hobbies into business is hard
Your wits must be sharp and always on guard
Reading contracts when you’re just a bard
That makes albums in sheds in a tiny backyard 

Feeling like Tim
But acting like Brent
So much time paid for and poorly misspent 
Wake up like Dawn
Take charge like Pam
The sweetest of sounds always spread like jam
Be your own boss
Bend all the rules
Stop playing office and start playing school
Learning’s cool
We are all fools

Break the habit, break, break the habit
Chase the rabbit, chase, chase the rabbit
We’ve never had it, never, ever had it
We blinked it bolted and no one could grab it

Change the pattern, change, change the pattern
Pass the baton, pass, pass the baton
It’s bound to happen, bound, bound to happen 
Right on the seats that we’re sat on

I wanna be Jim
But I’m probably Dwight
Or Michael Scott, Threat Level Midnight all right
Feeling like Tim
But foolish like Brent
Time milked for money just to barely scrape rent
Waking to Dawn
Open like Pam
Doing the business and not falling for scams
With my red stapler
I’m going to town
Say otherwise and I’ll burn the whole building down

Playing Office

Inspired by Australian author Craig Silvey’s novel “Honeybee”, in which a young 14 year old about to jump of a bridge sees an elderly man about to do the same thing, and they both stop and a close bond is created between them. Vic, the elderly gentleman, had lost hope when his wife passed away, and his love for her was straight from the heart. This was one of the reasons why he had decided to end his life…to be with her. Their love was special, and this song is about that love, and the loss.

In my dreams I am right there beside you
When I wake up I’m alone
In my dreams I am standing right behind you
When I wake up you are gone

In my dreams we would always be together
When I wake up we’re apart
In my dreams we would share our lives forever
When I wake it doesn’t start

In my dreams you fill the place with laughter
When I wake up silence calls
In my dreams we are happy ever after
When I wake up darkness falls

Dreams can be deceiving
When you wake up still believing
That the visions you’re perceiving could come true
And so I’m left here grieving 
At the thought that you are leaving
Forever in my dreams there’s ever you

In my dreams my arms are wrapped around you
And then I wake up with your arms enfolding me
In my dreams we would stay like this for hours
But when I wake up I find I’m lying by myself again

In my dreams I am standing right behind you
When I wake up you are gone
In my dreams I am right there beside you
When I wake up I’m alone

In My Dreams (Vic's Song)

Disordered is heavily influenced by New Order/Joy Division and Depeche Mode, but basically the result of my "studio" being in such a mess.

Confusion
Lost inside the mess within
This delusion
I’m really worried ‘bout the state I’m in
How could I know that this was gonna happen?
Was it written on my face?
What am I going to do tomorrow?
A lost cause all over the place

I’m disordered
Disordered
Disordered 
Disordered 

What was I thinking?
There must be something I can do without
Just start all over
Take the step and try to sort it out
Locked in isolation
I’m sure that I can find a way
Shocked in temptation
I don’t wanna live in disarray

In disorder
Disordered 
I’m disordered 
I’m disorganised

Don’t wanna be an inconvenience
I wanna fix this mess I’m in
I’m really worried about my world collapsing
I’m kind of worried about the state I’m in
I have to find a new sense of order
Before I simply fade away
Keep my head above water
Don’t wanna live in disarray

In disorder
I’m disordered 
I’m disordered 
I’m disorganised
I’m disordered

Disordered

Seasons came about after thinking how life can be tough at times, but then it can change in an instant to a completely different positive climate, just like the seasons in a year.

Sometimes, life is hard
It leaves you feeling like a dog left stranded in the summer sun
Thinking about the how and why, no reasons that can justify
You sitting all alone and crying, thinking you’re the only one

Just try and understand
There’ll be temporary moments
Even when the night is dark
And drenched by winter rain
Memories of disappointments
Will fade away
Waiting for the sun to come
For Spring to make us shine again

Wipe away the tears that’ve fallen like the leaves in autumn
Clouds swollen as they drift apart
Time for introspection or at least some self reflection
We’re not talking ‘bout rejection, you’re not ending with a broken heart

And try to understand
It’s just a temporary moment
Even though the night seems dark
And drenched by winter rain
Memories of disappointments
Will fade away
Waiting for the sun to come
For Spring to make us shine again

Pause…Reflect…Respect

Life is separated into periods of growth
Like the seasons of a year changing with an ebb and flow
There’ll be ups and downs with hopes and fears
And laughter, smiles and tears
And our dreams will be revived
If we remember what it means to be alive

Seasons

Balu

Following the thematic thrust of the earlier singles, New Eyes adds its own rushing narrative to the album’s ongoing exploration of the journey from innocence into experience—in this case a long, struggling moment where “where joy and pain peacefully unite.” In this fourth piece of the evolving album’s soundscaping portrait, we’re given a glimpse of a world recently discovered and seen with new emotional jeopardy and excitement. Pure love leads to pure pain—and where pleasure is absolute, so is the accompanying suffering.
Rich with rhythm, entrancing flourishes, and ominous emotional signals, New Eyes is Monique’s riveting take on Krautrock. Like a dance of love ripping through a burning building, the new single is ambient but aggressive, experimental yet traditional. Riding on a rhythm that throbs, smacks, and strums all at the same time, New Eyes combines the pounding nocturnal attack of Marianne Faithfull’s time-honoured Broken English with the wide-eyed curiosity and bravado of a contemporary Lene Lovich. As spidery hooks creep in, cloudy fuzztone dynamism gathers and  mushrooms, and Monique’s searching vocals reach through the music, catching shards of her soul, and ours too. This latest offering from Monique Barry takes the disco-punk dynamic by the throat and hurls it into a dance club inferno.
As well as providing Monique with a new recorded drama to explore and inhabit, New Eyes thrives and soars thanks to the participating artistry and inspiration of Marc Meriläinen (guitar), Alisdair Jones (bass), and Michael Wojewoda (mixing/drums).

HAAK

New Eyes

New Eyes Radio Edit

Solo Band, (sounds better than One-Man Band)...Meet the "band" here... http://youtu.be/2y1XbeCcKVc 
Songwriter heavily influenced by British Pop/Rock/Punk of the 80s-90s, and the Electronica/New Wave sounds of the 80s. All songs are written and performed by me - except for the few covers that I have obviously not written. Contact me at shippa63@gmail.com. Have a listen and let me know your honest opinions. Check out all of the albums, EPs and random singles available on Bandcamp via https://shppa-63.bandcamp.com/

Real

Shïppa-63

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